I have written in previous posts about having your rust repaired under Mazda Canada extended rust coverage. Including what is covered and what is not covered by their coverage (just click on the category “corrosion warranty” for a list of posts).
My car was taken in by QEW Mazda and sent to their authorized collision center in Oakville, Ontario. After 2 weeks without a car (despite being told it would take 5 days to perform the repairs) and no rental provided by Mazda Canada I had my car returned without a properly fastened rear bumper and rust returning in the B-Pillar within 30 days of my car being returned to me.
I called the dealership about the rear bumper and the retiming rust and was told that I would have to wait until they had warranty labels issued to them by Mazda Canada.
This all took place in January 2011, today is July 23, 2011 and I have yet to hear back from QEW Mazda as to having the appropriate repairs performed on my car.
I will be sending an email to QEW Mazda asking for an explanation and will share the results of that.
Have you had any problems with rust repair with your Mazda 3?
My mazda 3 is a 2007. I’ve was out of the country for 2 winters and the car was stored in my garage and there is excess rust underneath. I took it in for the regular oil change to a Mr. Lube and the mechanic commented on how bad it was. He took me under the car to show me and I snapped some photos and took it into the Mazda dealership. They were useless and told me it was normal. A year later they sent out a letter saying they will rust proof under the car because it has been an issue with the car (all mazda 3’s). The rust already started growing so rust proofing now is a little too late. I will never buy another mazda because of this.
Hey Laura, do you live in the Toronto area? If so, I can help you out with the rust problem.
I have a 2007 Mazda3 and I keep it immactulate. Weekly washings, I always keep my car protected with waxes and sealants and my paint is nearly flawless aside from your normal rock chips and such, but I have major rust forming behind the mirrors on the 2 front doors. Mazda refused to help me at all, so I sanded down the rust to get it as smooth as possible and painted over all the bad spots with Rustoleum to help “retard” the rust in hopes it won’t spread. Now, just like the rust popping up behind the black-out tape on the doors, I have rust spots appearing. I’m taking my car to a good body shop in my area to have that rust inspected and hopefully fixed. I love my Mazda3, but for a 6 year old car to rust like this, it’s ridiculous. Makes me wonder how many more Mazdas are out there with these rust problems. A cousin of mine has the same car as I do, year, color and model, and she has TERRIBLE rust in the passenger front door jamb just above the rocker panel. Flaky paint, terrible corrosion. She never reported it probably because she never noticed it. But as much as I love my car and take care of it, I can honestly say I will most likely not buy another Mazda because of this rust issue. My parents have had many Toyotas without rust, my sister has a 2000 Honda Civic with no apparent rust and my girlfriend’s car is a 1999 Ford Taurus, never seen a spot of rust on it. I intend on keeping my car for many more years, I just hope she doesn’t rust from the inside out and crumble away.
Nick, I hear you. Its frustrating, my understanding is that Mazda was using an environmentally friendly e-coat treatment to the bare body and it didn’t work.
The e-coat is a treatment that the bare metal body gets dunked into to treat the metal to combat corrosion prior to any primer or paint being applied.
I have also heard from a few sources that the newer Mazda3’s no longer have this problem, but I guess we will wait and see.
It seems for now the best thing to do is get the car sprayed by a reputable rust-proofing company. I don’t recommend just getting the car oil-sprayed. I know several technicians who say that it just washes away rather quickly and provides nearly no protection.